Job recruiters urge New Zealand workers to ‘Go West’

The State Government’s ‘Go West Now’ team heads to New Zealand this week on another push to attract skilled workers to fill Western Australia’s estimated 27,000 job vacancies.

Small Business Minister Margaret Quirk said forecasts predicted the mining sector would also need an extra 50,000 workers by 2020.

“The jobs on offer in WA at the moment range from mining to healthcare and hospitality and we need tradespeople of all disciplines,” Ms Quirk said.

“There are more than 27,000 job vacancies in metropolitan and regional areas, and those numbers are continuing to rise. We have great weather, fantastic career opportunities and a young and exciting rugby scene, what more could a Kiwi ask for?”

The Minister said it was important for prospective employees to recognise that despite the number of jobs, many mining jobs were based in regional centres, and not all were ‘fly-in-fly-out’ positions.

“We are desperately seeking skilled and semi-skilled workers who are keen to make a permanent move to WA, particularly those who will move to regional areas,” she said.

Ms Quirk said the WA Government was sending its Go West Now contingent to Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington this week, following the success of last year’s Go West Now campaign in New Zealand.

Representatives from the mining and resources sector, community services, tourism and hospitality, local government and health service providers and Department of Corrective Services, as well as banking and energy companies, would travel with the Go West Now team.